Markets end week in green on IT, PSU shares rally

Mumbai: Markets ended on a positive note for the fourth week as the Sensex gained 14 points to reach 17,554.30 following a sharp rise in IT shares on the back of higher earnings reported by Infosys.

Public sector stocks too ended with gains on renewed support from investors following talks of stake sale in some of them. Small-cap and mid-cap shares also moved up on persistent buying.

However, banking shares became the major losers of the week on fears that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) might tighten monetary policy due to a likely surge in inflation.

The BSE 30-share barometer Sensex ended higher by 14.01 points, or 0.08%, to settle at 17,554.30 against last weekend’s close of 17,540.29.

The BSE IT index rose by 446.26 points, or 9%, after encouraging third quarter results from Infosys, which registered a gain of 8.56% in its share prices.

India’s largest software services exporter TCS firmed up by 13.03%, while third-largest IT services exporter Wirpo shot up 9.80%.

The BSE small cap index outperformed the Sensex, rising by 272.82 points, or 3.14%, while the mid-cap index shot up 104.41 points, or 1.50%. The BSE PSU index vaulted by 204.42 points, or 2.10%.

The BSE dollex-200 and dollex-100 firmed up by 3.03% and 2.89%, respectively.

However, the BSE bankex dropped by 230.28 points, or 2.27%, followed by the BSE metal index, which fell 138.91 points, or 0.77%, and BSE FMCG, which lost 51.50 points, or 1.81%.

The NSE 50-share Nifty edged up further by 7.45 points, or 0.14%, to end the week at 5,252.20 from last weekend’s level of 5,244.75.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) rose by 0.66%.

India’s largest power equipment maker by sales BHEL lost 2.15%, while the country’s largest engineering and construction firm by sales Larsen and Toubro fell 1.52%. Hindalco dropped by 3.84% and Sterlite dipped 3.70%.

Among banks, SBI slipped by 6.25%, ICICI Bank by 3.74% and HDFC Bank by 1.32%.

During the week, the trading volume on the BSE fell to Rs31,229.62 cr from last weekend’s level of Rs33,023.59 crore, while the NSE improved further to Rs89,728.33 crore from Rs87,862.28 crore earlier.